Fourth installment of ‘The Roundup’ returns with familiar ally, riveting new villains

South Korea’s mega-hit crime action franchise “The Roundup” will return next month with its fourth installment, “The Roundup: Punishment,” just 11 months after the third one. The movie, this time, will see the reappearance of an old character as well as the addition of two new, stronger villains.

“I’m just full of gratitude to be able to create the fourth in this action crime franchise, which I came up with the idea for while brainstorming 11 years ago in a small room,” Don Lee, also known as Ma Dong-seok here, told reporters during a press conference held in Megabox Seongsu, Seoul, Monday.

This time, Don Lee returns to his original squad as a “monster cop” detective to take down former special forces agent Baek Chang-gi (Kim Moo-yul) and genius IT company CEO Jang Dong-chul (Lee Dong-hwi), by joining forces with former gang leader Jang Yi-soo (Park Ji-hwan).

The comeback of scene-stealer Jang Yi-soo is highly anticipated, as his comical action and lines speaking the Korean dialect spoken by ethnic Koreans in China grabbed attention in the first and the second installments.

“Yi-soo is dragged by detective Ma to cover the case with him because the case is related to illegal online gambling. While he still distrusts Ma, the funniest part is when Yi-soo realizes that he has been used as Ma’s prop – once again,” Park told reporters.

Reuniting after crime action flick “The Gangster, the Cop, the Devil,” which was invited to Cannes in 2019, Don Lee and Kim went to the Berlin International Film Festival last month with “The Roundup: Punishment.”

“After we went to Cannes five years ago, we went to Berlin together and I’ve noticed that the position where Korean films and culture stand has dramatically changed. I witnessed the hospitality of local fans there, who enjoyed our movie 120 percent. The language barrier has been completely shattered,” Kim told reporters.

Last month, the movie was invited to screen as one of 74th Berlin International Film Festival’s Special Gala films. It was the first time for a Korean action series to be invited to a gala screening, which sheds light on works that have both public and critical appeal.

“We saw a swarm of fans waiting in front of our hotel, waiting to take pictures with us and get autographs. After returning to my room, I shed tears because I felt so overwhelmed by making my dream come true,” Lee Dong-hwi told reporters.

When asked about the unique charm of “The Roundup: Punishment,” Don Lee said it’s the massive action sequences together with a weighty storyline that differentiate this movie compared to previous ones.

“While the third installment dealt with a more lively storyline with a stronger villain, this time the movie centers on showing massive action sequences by including the emotional development of victims as well as the appearance of heartfelt characters,” Don Lee told reporters.

“There is a unique relationship between the two villains, which was unprecedented in the previous installments. Dong-chul collaborates with Chang-gi but he also holds jealously. The fact that Dong-chul appears more frequently with Chang-gi than detective Ma is something new about this fourth installment,” Lee Dong-hwi added.

Director Heo Myeong-haeng, who has worked as a martial arts director in all three previous “The Roundup” series, helmed the fourth installment as a director.

“I focused on upgrading the movie’s comical scenes, as well as action sequences, as well as trying out something new artistically. I tried to mix the mise-en-scene and background music in a colorful way,” Heo told reporters.

“The Roundup: Punishment” hits local theaters on April 24.